HP confirms higher layoffs expected

PALO ALTO (AP) — Personal computer giant Hewlett-Packard Co. has confirmed that it expects layoffs at the upper end of a range that it outlined earlier this year, with 5,000 more workers than originally planned expected to lose jobs by October 2014.

The company said in a securities filing Monday that “continued market and business pressures” were behind the move. The additional cuts, on top of the 29,000 positions it planned to cut in a May 2012 restructuring plan, will likely boost the accumulated restructuring charges to $4.1 billion from $3.6 billion, it said.

Hewlett-Packard said in March that its estimated cutbacks could vary by as much as 15 percent from its original estimate. At an October meeting with analysts, Chief Financial Officer Cathie Lesjak said the company planned to end up “near the high end” of that range.

Cost cuts have helped HP weather revenue declines in PCs, printing and enterprise services. In the fiscal year through Oct. 31, revenue fell 7 percent to $112.3 billion, but the company posted $5.1 billion in net profit, compared with a $12.7 billion loss a year earlier.